H. B. 2086


(By Delegate Webster)

[Introduced January 9, 2003 ; referred to the

Committee on Pensions and Retirement then Finance.]





A BILL to amend and reenact section thirty-seven, article two, chapter fifteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to allowing certain former state police to resubscribe to the retirement system.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section thirty-seven, article two, chapter fifteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. WEST VIRGINIA STATE POLICE.
§15-2-37. Refunds to certain members upon discharge or resignation; deferred retirement.

(a) Any member who shall be is discharged by order of the superintendent or shall otherwise terminate terminates employment with the division, shall, at the written request of the member to the retirement board, be is entitled to receive from the retirement fund a sum equal to the aggregate of the principal amount of moneys deducted from his or her salary and paid into the death, disability and retirement fund plus four percent interest compounded thereon calculated annually as provided and required by this article.
(b) Any member who has ten or more years of service with the division and who withdraws his or her contributions may thereafter be reenlisted as a member of the division, but may not receive any prior service credit on account of former service, unless following reenlistment the member shall redeposit in the fund established in article two-a of this chapter the amount of the refund, together with interest thereon at the rate of seven and one-half percent per annum from the date of withdrawal to the date of redeposit, in which case he or she shall receive the same credit on account of his or her former service as if no refund had been made. He or she shall become a member of the retirement system established in article two-a of this chapter.
(c) Every member who completes ten years of service with the division of public safety is eligible, upon separation of employment with the division, either to withdraw his or her contributions in accordance with subsection (a) of this section or to choose not to withdraw his or her accumulated contributions with interest. Upon attainment of age sixty-two, a member who chooses not to withdraw his or her contributions will be eligible to receive a retirement annuity. Any member choosing to receive the deferred annuity under this subsection is not eligible to receive the annual annuity adjustment provided in section twenty-seven-a of this article. When the retirement board retires any member under any of the provisions of this section, the board shall, by order in writing, make an award directing that the member is entitled to receive annually and that there shall be paid to the member from the death, disability and retirement fund in equal monthly installments during the lifetime of the member while in status of retirement one or the other of two amounts, whichever is greater:
(1) An amount equal to five and one-half percent of the aggregate of salary paid to the member during the whole period of service as a member of the division of public safety West Virginia state police; or
(2) The sum of six thousand dollars.
The annuity shall be payable during the lifetime of the member. The retiring member may choose, in lieu of such a life annuity, an annuity in reduced amount payable during the member's lifetime, with one half of such reduced monthly amount paid to his or her surviving spouse if any, for the spouse's remaining lifetime after the death of the member. Reduction of this monthly benefit amount shall be calculated to be of equal actuarial value to the life annuity the member could otherwise have chosen.
(d) Any former member who completed ten years of service with the division of public safety and withdrew his or her contributions before this section was amended in one thousand nine hundred ninety-four to allow the option of nonwithdrawal now provided in subsection (c) of this section may reenlist into the West Virginia state police retirement system if he or she deposits in the fund established under article two-a of this chapter the amount previously withdrawn together with interest thereon at the rate of seven and one-half percent per annum.


NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow former members who completed at least ten years of service with the state police and withdrew their contributions before the section was amended to allow the option of nonwithdrawal to reenlist in the retirement fund if they deposit the amount previously withdrawn plus seven and one-half percent per annum of such amount.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.